Dear reader,
Keeping this short & sweet because we are catching a flight to my hometown Chicago in the morning. If you’re in either NYC or Chicago, I’ll be delighted to celebrate the release of my book with you soon. Scroll down for the details of my Thinking in Watercolor book tour! And if you enjoy my newsletter, please take a second to preorder. I keep this newsletter free so more people can have access to my thoughts on creativity, Paris and watercolor. But preordering gives the book a boost of confidence before it is published and helps it to get on the radar of the right people. You can also claim an exclusive watercolor class to get you up to speed before the book comes out. It’s my gift to you!
Today’s exercise
In the video above, I walk you through the process of painting this watercolor of Manhattan at night. I whip together New Yorker covers which I pitch to the magazine from time to time. This one was rejected, but I really enjoyed the process of building this layer by layer. And my 5 year old son insisted I teach him the technique, too. You can see above that he did really well.
What’s different about this exercise is the introduction of a new tool you may have already. Drawing gum. Drawing gum / masking fluid is a liquid latex that you paint on the surface of the paper to mask it from absorbing the paint. It’s perfect for building high contrast images, reinforcing positive and negative space and layering interesting details. Nonetheless pick some up if you don’t have some already and let me know how you get on!
I’m headed to the States on a micro book tour! If you’re in Chicago or NYC, I hope to hang out.
CHICAGO
Feb 23rd 3-5PM Watercolor Masterclass at the gorgeous studios of Siren Betty Design. Spots are limited.
Feb 25 7:30PM Fresh Faces at The Laugh Factory. I’m doing standup in my hometown!
Feb 26 WGN Spotlight Chicago appearance
NYC
March 4th Official pub day of Thinking in Watercolor: A Daily Practice to Unlock Your Creativity & Discover Your Inner Artist! Preorder here and receive your watercolor primer class.
March 5th Official book release event! In conversation with illustrator Julia Rothman at the Rizzoli Bookstore
I’ll be in NYC from Feb 28-March 7. Drop me a line if you’d like to me give your company an exclusive watercolor workshop. And if you’re interested in an appearance, interview, masterclass or live illustration, please drop me a line at jessiekanelosweiner @ gmail.com
P.S. Special thank you to the fabulous newsletters
, and for sharing more about Thinking in Watercolor! Read and subscribe.Take care, dear reader. And don’t drink the watercolor water.
Share this post